We write to urge Hoboken voters to Vote Yes on Nov. 6 on Hoboken Public Questions 1 and 3 and enact common sense electoral reform.

We seek to consolidate Hoboken municipal elections on a single day – Election Day in November – creating convenience for Hoboken voters, reducing voter fatigue, increasing turnout at the polls, and saving taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars by eliminating the costs of unnecessary, extra elections.

Over 1,800 Hoboken residents have signed our petitions to place these questions on the ballot in support of our initiative to consolidate Hoboken’s municipal elections.

We are a grass-roots group of voters acting in response to the scenario that Hoboken voters faced in 2009 – when we had five elections in eight months – with a Board of Education Election in April, a City Council and mayoral election in May, a primary election in June, a second June election for the City Council and mayoral runoff, and then a general election in November. We not only had to go to the polls five times just to make our voices heard in 2009, but we were barraged with five election cycles of robocalls, polling company calls, campaign mailers, “midnight” fliers, and constant, annoying reminders to vote in endless cycles of Hoboken elections.

If voters Vote Yes for Less on Hoboken Public Questions 1 and 3, we will never again have to endure another election season like 2009. Instead, we will be able to conveniently vote one time, for our municipal elections on Election Day in November – a day that historically has been a very strong day for voter turnout in our city. We believe that increasing civic participation in municipal elections is good for democracy and good for our city. We believe that if we can increase voter turnout and at the same time reduce costs to the taxpayer, that is a very good thing for our city.

By having the largest possible turnout with November municipal elections, we avoid the necessity of having a second, run-off election, currently required three weeks after our municipal elections, to elect our council people and mayor, if any fall short of receiving 50 percent of the vote on election day.

Members of the public, please join us and Vote Yes for Less on Hoboken Public Questions 1 and 3. These election reforms will create less elections; less costs to taxpayers; less junk mail; and less hassle in getting your voices heard; while generating greater voter turnout, resulting in fairer elections.